Posted on 11/01/2003 1:28:01 AM PST by RJCogburn
Just one day before he was to take over as the trustees' unanimous choice to lead Boston University, Daniel S. Goldin, the former NASA administrator, agreed to walk away from the presidency of the nation's fourth-largest private university for a reported payment of $1.8 million.
The university, whose officials only weeks ago hailed Mr. Goldin as a visionary leader, and Mr. Goldin, who had invited the entire faculty to his inauguration on Nov. 17, "terminated their contract and have mutually decided to part company," according to a statement released by Mr. Goldin and the university.
University officials would not say how much they would pay Mr. Goldin, but a person close to the board provided the figure. Mr. Goldin's five-year contract had called for a salary of $750,000 a year plus numerous benefits.
The departure was the culmination of a week of drama riveting not only Boston, the nation's capital of higher education, but also for much of academia, as suspense built over the presidency. Would Mr. Goldin, a fierce infighter, hold onto the job, even after a group of trustees had given him a last-minute vote of no confidence? Why had the trustees turned against Mr. Goldin?
And what was the role of John Silber, the chancellor and former president who has run Boston University with a tight hand for more than three decades and who was Mr. Goldin's biggest backer, at least until two weeks ago?
Neither responded to requests for comment.
"It's the worst example of university management in the history of higher education," said Alan Wolfe, a professor of political science at Boston College and a former faculty member at Boston University who was a critic of Dr. Silber. "Last night, I had dinner with two former ambassadors to European countries. The first question out of their mouths was, `Let's not talk about Bush, let's talk about Silber.' "
The about-face has raised questions about the university leadership, and it could imperil fund-raising and recruiting of administrators, experts said. It has led two trustees to resign.
The board named as interim president Dr. Aram V. Chobanian, the widely regarded dean of the medical school, who has been at B.U. for 40 years. Dr. Chobanian will serve for an indeterminate time, while the university mounts a new search — its second in less than 18 months.
The board also issued a brief statement that said: "Mr. Goldin wishes the students, faculty and staff of Boston University every success. The trustees wish Mr. Goldin the very best in his future endeavors. Neither party will discuss the matter further.`'
The board meeting signaled the end of an era at the university as the trustees accepted "with deep regret and appreciation" Dr. Silber's resignation as chancellor and a trustee. Dr. Silber, who had been telling friends that he was looking forward to retiring and time to sculpture and write books about Kant, will become president emeritus.
The board also voted to appoint a committee to consider its organization and define the search process for the next president.
Exactly what caused Mr. Goldin's candidacy to implode remains in dispute. Some people following the selection said that in recent weeks, as he began laying out his plans for the university, the board saw the volatile side of his temperament and began to have serious second thoughts. The trustees had heard reports that Mr. Goldin had hired a psychiatrist to evaluate Dr. Silber, apparently in an effort to sideline him.
Other people close to the board paint a far different picture, focusing on Dr. Silber's reluctance to relinquish authority and the wishes of some trustees to protect longstanding business relationships that they have with the university.
Mr. Goldin's costly settlement package was assembled after he sent the board a four-page memorandum on Monday that made it clear that he was talking to his lawyers and that he had already sold his house in Washington and was vacating his house in California, that he had given away much of his furniture and begun dissolving his consulting business "at great financial sacrifice" to take the presidency. He indicated that he would be ready if the trustees wanted a fight and expressed amazement over the questions about his temperament. "I have worked successfully with three president of the United States," he wrote.
The contract with the university would have made Mr. Goldin one of the highest paid university presidents in the country. It included a retirement plan worth more than $1 million, life insurance valued at three times his annual pay, a furnished house with a staff and a car and driver. The deal included more unusual perks for a university president like first-class travel for him and his wife and $10,000 a year worth of advice on financial planning.
Mr. Goldin's lawyer, Robert Barnett, said Mr. Goldin would not comment. "Mr. Goldin and I are very pleased that this matter has been resolved amicably," Mr. Barnett said. "Mr. Goldin has some exciting opportunities that he will now pursue."
Mr. Goldin, 63, is not the first person to lose favor after having been selected president of Boston University. The previous president, Jon Westling, was ousted last year after the trustees said he was not up to the fund-raising requirements of the post. Dr. Silber, who had taken the title of chancellor, then resumed the president's duties.
Dr. Silber, 77, who was on the latest search committee, had never met Mr. Goldin before the process began. But the former NASA administrator quickly became his favorite candidate, said William Skocpol, a professor of physics who was also on the search committee.
Dr. Silber, who transformed Boston into a university of national prominence, and Mr. Goldin are described by people who know them in strikingly similar terms like hard charging, brilliant, autocratic, demanding, courageous, controlling and moralistic.
"Dan Goldin was somebody that B.U. got very excited about," a person close to the university said. "He reminded a lot of people of the spirit of their youth, when they took a struggling university and turned it into a nationally known and respected university."
For all the strong points, the search committee was also aware of characteristics that had made him controversial at NASA like his admitted volatility. Several people close to the university said the search panel's members were aware of an interview, posted on the Internet, that Mr. Goldin gave in 1998 with the Academy of Achievement. Asked about dealing with adversity and criticism, Mr. Goldin said:
"Basically, I'm a volatile person. Every minute, I've got to manage my emotional control. Some people are born to be level. I fight every day of my life to be level, and I'm not allowed the luxury of blowing up. But occasionally I do."
But by Friday morning, Mr. Goldin had reportedly withdrawn his candidacy. At a news conference, a lawyer for the university, R. Robert Popeo, said that under the terms of the agreement Mr. Goldin had agreed "to waive any claim he may have had against Boston University."
"After considerable discussion," Mr. Popeo said, "all parties learned new things about each other that indicated Mr. Goldin was incompatible with the direction the university was going in and that the university was not a good fit for him."
The problems, he added, included "a whole host of issues, including style, the kind of person necessary to lead this university, temperament and other issues that both parties reflected on."
People familiar with Dr. Silber's leadership for a long time said they found the references to Mr. Goldin's style and temperament paradoxical, given that Dr. Silber has been criticized for his autocratic style and outbursts.
Some experts said it would take time for the university to recover. Richard Chait, a professor of higher education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, said the board's actions would make it difficult to attract top presidential candidates.
If his campus is anything like mine, it would take a couple of hours just to walk to his office from the nearest parking space.
So he does not have to walk, of course.
I was thinking that perhaps Manny Ramirez, since he has to stay in Boston it seems, might be able to help out as he is demonstrably overpaid...."BU President Manny".
Silber must be hell to work with, but he is "diversity" in higher education. Love him or hate him, it's good to have someone around who definitely isn't a gray "organization man." He's something like the Margaret Thatcher of the university world. He doesn't sway with the winds of the Zeitgeist, and that is something in a world where backbone is rare.
Maybe somebody should have tried that with Clinton.
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